John Fleck trains with the Scotland squad at La Finca Resort in Alicante, Spain, ahead of his positive Covid tet (Photo by Jose Breton / SNS Group)John Fleck trains with the Scotland squad at La Finca Resort in Alicante, Spain, ahead of his positive Covid tet (Photo by Jose Breton / SNS Group)
John Fleck trains with the Scotland squad at La Finca Resort in Alicante, Spain, ahead of his positive Covid tet (Photo by Jose Breton / SNS Group)

Celtic quartet to start? Scotland's predicted XI to face Netherlands after seven Covid withdrawals

The loss of seven players for tonight’s friendly against Netherlands has presented Scotland head coach Steve Clarke with a selection headache.

A positive Covid test had already ruled out Sheffield United midfielder John Fleck, but the SFA medical team has now identified six close contacts meaning the Scotland boss will also be without David Marshall, Grant Hanley, Stephen O’Donnell, Nathan Patterson, John McGinn and Che Adams.

Midfielders Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour are also unlikely to feature, the pair having joined the squad late following their extended club commitments with Manchester United and Chelsea respectively

It leaves Clark with limited options, particularly in midfield and the right wing-back area, for tonight’s opening Euro 2020 warm-up match in Portugal ahead of Scotland’s first tournament fixture against the Czech Republic at Hampden Park in just 12 days time.

He is unlikely to tinker with the formation so close to the tournament, so here is our prediction for how the Scotland head coach will line-up tonight in his preferred 3-5-2 system: